Passing the candle: Auburn sorority members keep tradition of announcing engagement through ceremony

Pass, pass, pass and the candle, adorned with pastel flowers and ribbons, is blown out.

She’s getting married.

Brooke Buckles, senior in communications and member of Alpha Omicron Pi, kept her engagement a secret until her closest sisters formed the traditional circle for passing the candle.

“It was important to me because I have seen the [AOII] girls support me in so many other aspects in life, and I have been able to do the same thing for them,” Buckles said. “Being able to have that time with them before it was public knowledge was great.”

She waited as the candle came to her, and with a subtle huff, she announced her engagement in a centuries-old tradition.

Buckles’ fiancé proposed on March 10, and the two waited through spring break and announced the engagement on Sunday, one of the two days of chapter the girls are able to perform the ceremony.

“I couldn’t wait until Wednesday,” Buckles said. “There is an email sent out, and it’s tradition for everyone to come. It’s a secret who is getting engaged, but everyone knows that’s why they are coming to the chapter room.”

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Laurie Harris, AOII advisor and friend of Buckles, also got engaged over spring break and had her candle pass ceremony shortly after during her time as an Auburn student. She encouraged Buckles to continue the tradition and wait to spread the news.

She was present for Buckles’ announcement and values her choice to continue the tradition. Harris graduated in 2008 and announced her engagement with two other sisters that night.

A song is sung by the members of the group, the candle is passed hand-by-hand three times until the last round when the lucky lady blows out the candle.

Buckles said some women place their engagement ring down the candlestick, but she was worried about the wax and decided against that.

Buckles’ bouquet was pink, white and purple. She said some women chose to go with the sorority’s colors, which would have been red and white for Buckles. She was sold on a classic bridal color scheme.

According to the Collegiate Chapter Operations Manual, a book of ritual instructions is required. There are other traditions that are not as common now, but were many years ago.

First, women would be “pinned,” meaning their significant other, a member of a fraternity, would give her his fraternity pin in the sorority chapter room. Next, the fraternity man would give the woman his lavalier, or necklace with his Greek letters. Finally, the candle pass ceremony would announce the engagement.

“I had always said I wanted to stick to tradition because I have been super involved with AOII,” Buckles said. “I just spent so much of my college time with those girls and with the chapter. I told my, now, fiancé that I wanted one, but because it was before spring break, we waited.”

The proposal was out on the dock of Buckles’ grandparent’s house. They fished and hung out by the lake with her family until dinner time when the family got ready to go out.

Peter Berryman, senior in industrial systems engineering and the man of the hour, walked her down to the dock — her special place. He proposed after two years of dating. The two met at Auburn.

After announcing her engagement through the whisper of a candle, Buckles stood in front of her sisters and told the story of their relationship and engagement.

“I was shaking,” Buckles said. “I hadn’t really told anyone, and I was finally getting to share those emotions — the excitement and nerves — with all of my friends. I was kind of freaking out.”